tag:computers.tutsplus.com,2005:/categories/home-automationEnvato Tuts+ Computer Skills - Home Automation2016-11-07T02:00:37Ztag:computers.tutsplus.com,2005:PostPresenter/cms-27585How to Control Nest Thermostat and Nest Protect From a Mac<p>The <em>Internet of Things</em> is putting the long promised dream of home automation at our fingertips, whereever we may be. In this tutorial, I'll show you how to control Nest Products from a Mac.<br></p><h2>Control Your Home From Your Phone<br>
</h2><p>Nest Labs—a company founded by Tony Fadell the former Senior Vice President of the iPod Division at Apple—is a home automation producer of programmable Wi-Fi-enabled devices.</p><p>Founded in 2010, Nest started with the learning thermostat, introduced in the US in 2011, later rolling out the Protect smoke detector—in 2013—then indoor and outdoor security cameras in 2014 and 2016 respectively.</p><p>Nest products communicate with each other and can be controlled from a Smartphone.</p><h2>The Problem<br>
</h2><p>For me, the problem is when I'm in the office and the room starts to get a bit chilly. </p><p>My office is in the loft and it's a long way downstairs to go to adjust the thermostat a degree or two ...and, again, having to return to turn it down or off.</p><p>It might be that I do not have my smartphone to hand, perhaps it is charging elsewhere. I'd like a way to be able to control Nest devices from the Mac.</p><h2>Available Solutions</h2><p>Nest offers a number of apps for various devices in order to put home automation at your fingertips.</p><h3>Smartphones</h3><p>Nest produces apps for:</p><ul>
<li>iPhone running <strong>iOS 8</strong> or later</li>
<li>Android phone running <strong>Android 4.1 Jelly Bean</strong> or later</li>
</ul><h3>Smart Watches<br>
</h3><p>Nest produces apps for:<br></p><ul>
<li>
<strong>watchOS 2</strong> with <strong>iOS 9</strong> or later</li>
<li>
<strong>Android Wear 5.1.1</strong> and <strong>Android 4.3 Jelly Bean</strong> or later</li>
</ul><h3>Tablets</h3><p>Nest produces apps for:<br></p><ul>
<li>iPhone running <strong>iOS 8</strong> or later</li>
<li>Android tablet running <strong>Android 4.1 Jelly Bean</strong> or later</li>
</ul><h3>Desktop</h3><p>Use the latest version of <strong>Safari</strong>, <strong>Chrome</strong>, <strong>Firefox</strong> or <strong>Internet Explorer</strong> / <strong>Edge</strong> browsers on the following operating systems.</p><ul>
<li>
<strong>Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks</strong> or later</li>
<li>
<strong>macOS 10.12 Sierra</strong> or later</li>
<li>
<strong>Windows 7</strong> or later</li>
</ul><h2>Desktop Apps</h2><p>Apart from using the Nest website in a browser, there is no dedicated Nest app for desktop operating systems.</p><p>Of course, it is easy enough to launch a web browser, navigate to <a href="https://home.nest.com/">https://home.nest.com/</a>, find the account username and password, type them in, log in and adjust the temperature.</p><p>On the other hand, the convenience of a desktop app affords immediate control of the thermostat when desired.</p><p>And there are solutions for this.</p><p>In the <strong>Mac App Store</strong>, you'll find apps such as:</p><ul>
<li>
<strong><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/thermobar/id820786045?mt=12" target="_self">Thermobar</a></strong>, £1.49, two-star rating</li>
<li>
<strong><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/thessa/id942305623?mt=12" target="_self">Thessa</a></strong>,<strong> </strong>£2.29, three-and-a-half-star rating</li>
<li>
<strong><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/climate/id568166831?mt=12" target="_self">Climate</a></strong>, £3.99, three-star rating</li>
</ul><p>None are official Nest apps, and all have not been updated in some time. Specifically two, one and two years respectively at the time of writing.</p><h2>The Envato Solution</h2><p>Whilst some like having control from the menubar—others hate the additional clutter—it can be useful to have quick access from the desktop.</p><p>The solution that I propose is no cost, other than your time, and places an icon on the dock thus affording quick access when needed.</p><h3>What You'll Need</h3><ul>
<li>A Mac running <strong>Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks</strong> or later, or</li>
<li>A Mac running <strong>macOS 10.12 Sierra</strong> or later</li>
<li>A Nest thermostat</li>
<li>A Nest account</li>
<li>A copy of <strong>Fluid</strong> app</li>
<li>A 1024x124px icon (optional)</li>
</ul><p>The solution that I'm showing you essentially looks like an app and is created by using a site-specific browser, or SSB.</p><p>The solution that I'm showing you works on Macs. </p><h3>1. Download Fluid</h3><figure class="post_image"><img alt="Download the Fluid app from the developers website" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/FluidWebsite.jpg"><figcaption>Download the Fluid app from the developer's website</figcaption></figure><p>In a web browser, visit the <strong>Fluid</strong> app website at <a href="https://fluidapp.com" target="_self">fluidapp.com</a> and download and install the application.</p><h3>2. Launch Fluid<br>
</h3><figure class="post_image"><img alt="Launching Fluid app" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/CreateFluidApp.jpg"><figcaption>Launching Fluid app</figcaption></figure><p><strong>Fluid</strong> is an application that allows for the creation of site-specific browsers, or SSBs, that just happens to be a great way of making webpages appear like apps on the Mac.</p><p>The advantage of this is that just one site resides in a SSB. The SSB can be pinned to the <strong>dock</strong> for easy access and the closing of a web browser will not close an SSB.</p><p>When configuring sites as separate apps in <strong>Fluid</strong>, you can choose to use the website favicon or create it with a custom icon.</p><h3>3. Configure the Fluid App for Nest</h3><figure class="post_image"><img alt="" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/CreateFluidAppWithFavicon.jpg"></figure><p>In the <strong>URL:</strong> field, enter <a href="https://home.nest.com/">https://home.nest.com/</a></p><p>In the <strong>Name:</strong> field, enter <strong>Nest</strong>, or whatever name you'd like to call the app.</p><p>For the time being, leave the <strong>Icon:</strong> field as <strong>Use Website Favicon</strong>. You can change this later if you wish.</p><p>Click the <strong>Create</strong> button to create the Nest app.</p><figure class="post_image"><img alt="Successful created of the Fluid Nest app" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/FluidAppCreated.jpg"><figcaption>Successful created of the Fluid Nest app</figcaption></figure><p>When created, the app will be automatically placed in the Mac's <strong>Applications</strong> folder and display a message saying <strong>Success!</strong></p><h3>4. Launch the Nest App</h3><figure class="post_image"><img alt="The Nest app in the Applications folder on the Mac" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/Applications.jpg"><figcaption>The Nest app in the Applications folder on the Mac</figcaption></figure><p>From the <strong>Success!</strong> dialogue window, either click <strong>Launch Now</strong> or <strong>Reveal in Finder</strong> in order to launch the <strong>Nest</strong> app. The latter will show the <strong>Nest</strong> app in the <strong>Applications</strong> folder from where it may be launched.</p><figure class="post_image"><img alt="" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/FluidNestDock.jpg"></figure><p>Once launched, the <strong>Nest</strong> app appears as an icon in the dock. In this example it has taken the favicon of the Nest website.</p><p>Click on the icon to launch the Nest app.</p><h3>5. Log In to Nest<br>
</h3><figure class="post_image"><img alt="Signing in to the Nest app" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/NestSignIn.jpg"><figcaption>Signing in to the Nest app</figcaption></figure><p>Enter your Nest account <strong>Email address</strong> and <strong>Password</strong> into the field in the <strong>Nest</strong> app. This is just the Nest website wrapped into an app. </p><p>Once you've signed in, it will not be necessary to sign in again each time you open the app. Your credentials will be remembered.</p><h3>6. Test Nest</h3><figure class="post_image"><img alt="The Nest Thermostat interface in the Nest app" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/TestNest.jpg"><figcaption>The Nest Thermostat interface in the Nest app</figcaption></figure><p>Once you've signed-in, you're able to control the temperature settings on your Nest thermostat without having to leave the Mac or reach for another device to control it.</p><p>Exploring the interface, you can check and amend the schedule, check the history of energy usage, and check your Nest account settings.</p><figure class="post_image"><img alt="The Nest Thermostat Protect smoke detector interface in the Nest app" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/NestProtect.jpg"><figcaption>The Nest Thermostat Protect smoke detector interface in the Nest app</figcaption></figure><p>If you have other Nest devices, such as the Nest Protect smoke alarm shown here, you can monitor those and control them also.</p><h3>7. Customisation</h3><figure class="post_image"><img alt="You can customise the Nest app with any icon you like 1024x1024px recommended" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/CustomIcon.jpg"><figcaption>You can customise the Nest app with any icon you like, 1024x1024px recommended</figcaption></figure><p>In the screenshot above, you'll see that I have a Nest thermostat icon that looks more visually appealing that the blue and white Nest website favicon.</p><p>If you'd like this, too, create a 1024x1024px icon or download the one I've included with this tutorial.</p><p>With the Nest app open, from the menu bar go to <strong>Preferences &gt; General</strong> to open the <strong>General Preferences</strong> window.</p><figure class="post_image"><img alt="Fluid app General Preferences for configuring the app icon" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/FluidIconPreferences.jpg"><figcaption>Fluid app General Preferences for configuring the app icon</figcaption></figure><p>Nest to <strong>Application icon:</strong> click the <strong>Change... </strong>button and follow to upload a chosen 1024x1024px icon.</p><p>Quit and restart the <strong>Nest</strong> app to see the new icon.</p><figure class="post_image"><img alt="You may wish to keep the Nest app icon in the dock for ease of access" data-src="https://cms-assets.tutsplus.com/uploads/users/31/posts/27585/image/CustomIcon1.jpg"><figcaption>You may wish to keep the Nest app icon in the dock for ease of access</figcaption></figure><p>If you wish, secondary-click on the app icon in the <strong>Dock</strong>, select <strong>Options</strong> then click <strong>Keep in Dock</strong>.</p><h2>Conclusion<br>
</h2><p><strong>Fluid</strong> app is a handy little app for creating SSBs, or site-specific browsers, ideal for applications such as the Nest website.</p><p>I've previously shown you how to create a <strong>World Clock</strong> app in the <strong>Dock</strong> of a Mac.</p><p><strong>Fluid</strong> is useful for all sorts of other sites that you'd like to run separately, and appear as an app in the <strong>Dock</strong>, from other web browser pages.</p><ul class="roundup-block__contents posts--half-width roundup-block--card">
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</ul><p><br></p>2016-11-07T02:00:37.000Z2016-11-07T02:00:37.000ZJohnny Winter